My god luck to have been there on the fence at the top of the first and steepest of the descents. You cannot get a true sense of just how steep both the descents are unless you are standing on them. Not an easy feat in itself. Insane! True Guts Prize went to Mathieu Van Der Poel who on the next to last lap tried to improve his 5th place position by throwing it in the 11 and sprinting down that descent. The entire immense crowd in the sandpit let out a collective “oooo!” Nobody could believe what they saw. An incredible race start to its thrilling finish. But for Nys’ 2 small bobbles on the last climb it would have been his day. Pauwels saw those and he grabbed the opportunity.

Read the magazine:

Join our Team!

Cyclocross MagazineAbout Us

Cyclocross Magazine is a print and digital magazine and website for the cyclocross community by cyclocross racers. We’re based on community-contributed content, which means we welcome content submissions from anyone and prioritize representing all aspects of the sport of cyclocross, from the most grass-roots scene to the highest professional level of the sport.